Vanessa Fisher's first birth wasn't what she expected, and she was disappointed by the whole hospital experience.

So when she fell pregnant with baby number two she knew she wanted to do something different, and after a lot of research found the perfect thing.

She decided she wanted everything to be completely natural, and set her heart on a lotus birth.

The unusual method, which has been heavily criticised by some medical experts, sees the new parents not cutting the umbilical cord and leaving the placenta attached to the newborn until it drops off naturally.

Many doctors warn against this procedure, stating there is a higher risk of infection. However Vanessa was determined to go ahead.

"It was very early in the pregnancy that we decided that this would be added to our birth plan.

"In my mind i imagine the baby spending ten months in the uterus only knowing his mother giving him life, his placenta offering him nourishment and the umbilical cord connecting him to both.

"After birth the baby is normally is taken from the womb and separated from his cord and placenta, a series of events that I imagine could be emotionally traumatic for baby.

"A reintroduction to mother externally cannot be avoided, but a gradual separation from the umbilical cord and placenta seems more emotionally considerate of baby.

"I believe that in the time that the cord is naturally detaching and the placenta is completing its job providing nutrients and blood to baby, baby has time to establish a new bond and dependency on the father."